Improved pole for stretching- leather



a liuted milie W, @time HUGH DAWSON, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

Leners Patent No. 88,697, daad April 6, 1869.

IMPROVED POLE FOR. S'lllRIEilCHIN'Gi- LEATHER The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent land. making part of the sans.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HUGH DAWSON, of the city of Baltimore, in the county of Baltimore, and State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Stretching Leather, immediately after being stuffed by the process commonly called dubbing; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof', reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, like letters indicating like parts wherever they occur.

To enable others skilled in the art to construct and use my invention, I will` proceed to describe it.

It relates to machines, or devices for stretching leather, and consists in the novel construction of stretcher-blocks, with hooks so arranged upon a pole as to be adjustable thereon, for the purpose of holding the hidein a certain desired position for drying. p

In the drawings- Figure I is a perspective View of my device, showing the manner of applying the same;

Figure II is a perspective view of the same, detached; and

Figure III is a perspective View of a modication of the same.

Hides of leather intended for saddle, harness, and similar uses,I after being stuffedf or subjected to the process of dubbing, and slit through the middle, are hung up to dry. The usual way of doing this is to use a pole for every half hide. The pole 4is brought to the table upon which the hide is lying, and its straight edge, made by cutting the hide in two parts, is stretched lirmly along the pole, and nailed fast to it. The pole, with the hide thus attached, is then mounted on a frame, and another pole is brought to the table, and another hide is attached in a similar manner, and mounted on the frame, and so on. This is not only very inconvenient, requiring a great deal of time and labor, but in the end is expensive, as it requires a constant outlay for nails, which not only injure, but also destroy `the poles.

VThe obj ect of my invention is to do away with the necessity of attaching Athe leather hides, after being l stuffed, tothe poles by the use of nails, 85o.

To accomplish this, 'I make my pole, A, of any suitable material, and of any desired form. It may he square, as shown in Fig. I, or round, as shown in Fig. III.

If the pole ismade square, 1 construct blocks, B, mortised, and provided with a hook, C, as clearly shown in Figs. I and II, and of the proper size to slide on the pole, as shown in Fig. I.

Ii the pole is made round, then I make the mortise or hole in the head .of the block to correspond with it, so that it may'slide on the pole, as shown in Fig. III.

The pole A, when provided With blocks B, constructed as described, I carry to the table upon which the stuffed hides of leather are lying,land attach the hooks C at each end of the straight side of the hide,

and draw the blocks B away from each other as far as possible, or so as to stretch the hide as much as may be desired. As the hooks C are turned in opposite directions from one another, the strain upon them causes the blocks B to clasp the pole in such a manner as to prevent'their sliding.

If desired, a ratchet-plate, a, may be attached, as shown in Fig. I. V

When the hide is thus attached, I mount the pole on the frame F, as shown in Fig. I, and in this way having any desired number of poles, provided with blocks, I can stretch and hang up to dry any number of hides, without the labor and inconvenience of stretching and nailing them to the poles, and Without injuring the poles by driving nails therein.

Having thus described my invention,

What I claim, is-

The blocks B, provided with the hooks C, in combination with the pole A, when constructed and arranged as described, for the purpose of stretching, holding, and suspending hides of leather, as set forth.

HUGH DAWSON.

Witnesses:

SAML. JARDEN, J AMES B. BARRY. 

